Wasting Time At Work: The Epidemic Continues

It’s time again for an updated look at wasted time in the workplace. In 2012 and 2013 I addressed this topic with the help of my friend Russ Warner, an Internet security expert and board member of internet filtering company ContentWatch (he is VP of Marketing for Converus, Inc., the provider of EyeDetect software for identifying deception.)

A year ago, 69% of respondents said they waste at least some time at work on a daily basis. But the number of people who now admit to wasting time at work every day has reached a whopping 89%. Employees are spending longer periods than ever before “wasting time.” Employers, be prepared for alarm as you review the newest statistical breakdown:

31% waste roughly 30 minutes daily

31% waste roughly 1 hour daily

16% waste roughly 2 hours daily

6% waste roughly 3 hours daily

2% waste roughly 4 hours daily

2% waste 5 or more hours daily

Which means, according to Salary.com contributor Aaron Gouveia, that 4% of people surveyed waste at least half the average workday on non work-related tasks. Half.

A second survey by
Harris Poll for CareerBuilder queried 2,138 hiring managers and HR professionals and 3,022 full-time workers across a variety of industries and company sizes to determine the reasons for the steadily increasing waste of time. Not surprisingly, personal use of technology continues to lead the charge. Twenty-four percent of workers admitted they spend at least an hour a day on personal email, texts and personal calls. According to the survey, time wasters are doing the following:

Talking on the cell phone and texting – 50%

Gossiping – 42%

On the Internet – 39%

On Social media – 38%

Taking snack breaks or smoke breaks – 27%

Distracted by noisy co-workers – 24%

In meetings – 23%

On email – 23%

Distracted by co-worker drop byes – 23%

Distracted by co-worker calls on speaker phone – 10%

In this study, employers also shared some of the real-life examples of what they’ve seen employees doing when they should have been focused on work:

A married employee was looking at a dating web site and then denied it while it was still up on his computer screen

An employee was caring for her pet bird that she smuggled into work

An employee was shaving her legs in the women’s restroom

An employee was laying under boxes to scare people

Employees were having a wrestling match

A sleeping employee claimed he was praying (creative!)

An employee was changing clothes in a cubicle

An employee was printing off a book from the Internet

An employee was warming her bare feet under the bathroom hand dryer

Okay, the situation is not only tragic, but downright humorous, too. But with what’s a company to do? Here are a few prospective solutions:

Better workplace policies. In the cases of excess noise and speakerphones and continual drop-byes, some of the problem may be awareness. A good employee policy and discussion around the challenges and expectations of the team and company may be enough to curtail the most egregious transgressions (and will allow the backdrop for more productive HR discussions when these problems occur). However, particularly for millennial and younger workers, a policy to remove personal devices or prohibit all access and texting during working hours is likely to be resented or simply ignored.

Better working agreements. An increasing number of companies, recognizing the nature and realities of the current technology landscape are putting greater emphasis on work accomplished instead of hours served. This is a wonderful development in that it puts trust and accountability on the shoulders of workers while allowing flexibility for the non-work activities that if kept within bounds can ultimately keep a worker refreshed and on task. If a worker is able to complete a project and go home, she is much less inclined to waste hours of her time or mill around as a distraction to others. Likewise, many workers (and millennials in particular) are more productive overall if they are allowed to work for a period of time, then take a break to play a game of ping pong or browse social media for a few minutes between segments of work.

Internet filtering. Beyond these parameters, however, Internet filtering devices are imperative. Blocking social media sites is probably too extreme a measure; however, every company must protect itself from the potential liability of employees being confronted by unwanted material while at work, as well as blocking the malware that arrives through illegal and unsavory sites. Likewise, filtering appliances can modulate the network bandwidth that can get eaten up in activities such as excessive video use.

Education. By and large employees may be unaware of the implications of using company time for activities such as disparaging the company, mocking its clients, or gossiping about fellow workers, particularly when they are carrying out these activities online. Discovery is easier than they may think. Not only do these activities result in negative job reviews, some situations are severe enough to end a career. A little education on these issues can go far. It is increasingly difficult to ensure your activities on the Internet will stay private (even if you are careful to erase your own screen, what about the recipient(s) of your messages? And what about the archives your programs are leaving behind?) This knowledge, alone, can be an incentive for employees to spend a greater share of their working hours on accomplishing their jobs.

Do you have additional war stories to share on this topic? And what are the best strategies you’ve used in your own organization to quell the epidemic of wasted hours at work? I welcome your inputs in the comment section below.

I am an entrepreneur and communications expert from Salt Lake City and founder of SnappConner PR. I am the author of Beyond PR: Communicate Like A Champ In The Digital Age, available on Amazon. I am co-creator of Content University, which helps entrepreneurs and executives ...